Overview  Syllabus  Schedule  Links
Syllabus
Overview The Internet has evolved into the major global communication medium that enables a plethora of applications from video streaming to . As a "network of networks" the Internet is based on computer networks technologies which have to address many challenges to achieve ubiquity, scalability and performance. In this course, we will explore the concepts that build the foundation of current and future computer network.
The goals is to expose you to a broad range of topics that are interesting to graduate students who focus their research on computer networks as well as other areas that are concerned with distributed systems.

This course will emphasize on practical and theoretical aspects of computer networks. I expect that students prepare for class by reading additional material like research papers and be able to contribute to in-class discussion. Technical writing skills for assignments and lab reports are expected.
Course Goals
Course Components
The major components of this course are:
Lectures and Reading Assignment
The lecture will be a mix of traditional lecture-style presentation  and in-class discussion of the assigned reading material. You are expected to have read the assigned material and be able to answer questions about it. Students are strongly encouraged to ask any questions they might have about the reading material during the lecture or office hours.

Homework Assignments
There will be short homework assignments between lectures. These assignments will be available through moodle and solutions must be submitted online in moodle. The deadline for each homework is the beginning of the next lecture.

Lab Assignments
In this course, students have to work on four lab projects. You will need to complete the assigned tasks for each lab exercise and submit a lab report. The grade for the lab assignment will be based on the correctness of your results, the quality of your experimental work, and the overall quality of the report. 

Course Project
The final project will also be a lab assignment. The exact topic of the assignment will be discussed on an individual basis to ensure a suitable challenge. The assignment aims at developing a novel prototype system, protocol experiment, or similar and a brief technical report. The grading will be based on the quality of the development and the technical report. Course projects must adhere to the formatting and style guidelines provided.

Exams
There will be three exams, which will be held during class meetings.

Grading
The final grade for this course will be determined by weighing each course component as follows:
Moodle
To manage all assignments and grades moddle will be used.

Late / Make-Up Policy
Assignments are due as posted on the course web page. Late submissions will NOT be accepted unless by prior arrangement with the instructor. Scheduling conflicts regarding exams should be reported to the instructor immediately. In case of a medical emergency, late submission or a make-up exam can be requested if a note from a medical professional is provided. The note must indicate that the student was medically incapable at the time of the exam. If advanced notice is possible and not given, the instructor may refuse the request.


Inclusivity

We are all members of an academic community with a shared responsibility to cultivate a climate where all students/individuals are valued and where both they and their ideas are treated with respect. The diversity of the participants in this course is a valuable source of ideas, problem solving strategies, and engineering creativity. If you feel that your contribution is not being valued for any reason, please speak with me privately. You may also speak with Dr. Paula Rees, Assistant Dean for Diversity (rees@umass.edu, 413.545.6324, Marston 128), submit a comment to the box on the door of Marston 128, or submit an anonymous comment online http://tinyurl.com/UMassEngineerClimate .